It will be complicated but not impossible.
While we thought they were badly on board to get out of the pools of the Tokyo Games after their initial defeat against Japan, the French basketball players retain chances of qualifying for the quarterfinals of the Olympic basketball tournament.
Monday at 6:40 am, they will face the formidable American team, undefeated at the Olympic Games since 1992 and which has not conceded the slightest defeat in international competition since the 2006 World Cup.
A defeat would not be crippling
If an exploit against the United States is not completely to be ruled out, it nevertheless seems highly improbable.
However, the good news is that a loss in this third group game would not doom the French women to elimination.
Thanks to their large victory against Nigeria (87-62) on Friday, they remain in the race and point to third place in their group.
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The easiest option for the Blues would be for Nigeria to win against Japan earlier today.
This scenario would allow them to be among the top two in Group B and therefore to be directly qualified for the quarterfinals even before facing the United States.
The difference in points could prove to be crucial
Thanks to a positive point difference of 21, the Bleues are the best third out of the three pools of the Olympic tournament and are therefore virtually qualified before their match against the Americans, a revenge of the final of the London Games in 2012. But still needed -he remain among the two best thirds while maintaining this difference in points and therefore without falling to a large margin on Monday morning.
Loss of more than 14 points prohibited.
Note that in Pool A, where all games have been played, the Canadians are third with a positive difference of 7 points. In Pool C, Australia is third with a negative difference of 17 points. But the latter could return to the positive after the final group match against Puerto Rico, the last of the group.